


Bukas Na Lang (I’ll Do It Tomorrow)

by renzie17



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Bending, College AU, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Mentions of alcohol, Mutual Pining, Rating might change idk yet, Slow Burn, band au, ish? I guess? Probably?, zutara OPM
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:21:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,153
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27087019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/renzie17/pseuds/renzie17
Summary: There was a pull of gravity the day they met, but the friendship they create makes them wonder if it’s worth the risk to move past that.OR: Zuko is part of Sokka’s band and is attracted to his sister, Katara. She likes him too, but maybe it’s better to just stay friends.
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar), background - Sokka/Suki
Comments: 3
Kudos: 20





	Bukas Na Lang (I’ll Do It Tomorrow)

**Author's Note:**

> This is set in the same world of Avatar, but in a modern setting and with no bending.
> 
> Also, here’s some art I made for this fic! It’s also a thread with song recs if you wanna check it out. I’m not sure if I’ll do any more art tho because I have so much stuff to do as it is fivnafljvnalfn (also, follow me on twitter heehee)  
> https://twitter.com/wondrgrlwannabe/status/1317912079664214016?s=21
> 
> Also, also! Check out Zutara OPM’s official twitter/tumblr/instagram for more content or if you haven’t heard of the event yet! (Links at the end notes)

“LASING”

_/ la - síng /_

adj. drunk

_Alkohol, alkohol, utak mo’y buhol-buhol. (Alcohol, alcohol, your mind is in a twist.)_

_— Alkohol, Eraserheads_

º

The music was loud and people watched the band playing onstage. Some of them were jumping and singing along to the cover of a song the band was playing. Lights shimmied around the room as smoke from smoke machines flittered through the air with a subtle mix of cigarette smoke wafting in from the smoking area nearby.

“I hope all of you had a great time! Thank you and good night!” The vocalist announced before she and her band started packing up their personal gears. Live music smoothly transitioned into some party song on the speakers and the vocalist jumped off the side of the stage ran into her boyfriend’s arms.

“Suki you were amazing!” Sokka said, kissing the top of her head. “As usual,” he added. He looked at her lovingly and Katara couldn’t help but admire them and their relationship. They hadn’t been together for too long, but it was already so obvious they were made for each other. She looked away when they started making out because _gross._ She was never going to get used to seeing her brother make out with one of her closest friends.

Katara sipped at her cocktail while casually looking at her surroundings. It had been a while since she went for a night out with her friends. Pre-med was killing her with exams and requirements. Midterms had just ended so she was making the most out of the small window of time where she had no requirements to finish. So _what_ if she had no sleep? Sleep was for the weak!

“Katara!” She heard Suki call her after a minute. She turned around and gave the singer a big hug. “You! Finally! Made it!!!” She excitedly shouted as she let go of Katara.

“You and the girls were amazing! I can’t believe I’ve been missing out on this.”

“Oh, it’s alright. You know I understand. But hey!” She tapped Katara’s shoulder playfully, “You’re here! I’m gonna have to buy you a drink.”

“What about your bandmates? Don’t they—?” She looked over at the stage only to find it empty of Suki’s bandmates.

“They invited their friends too. Post-midterm hype and all. You know how it is.”

And Katara did know how it was. There were parties everywhere, bars and clubs holding post-midterm events like mini concerts and giving discounted prices for alcohol. Even other university students everywhere held parties of their own, kids hopping from one party to another until they were all partied out and nursing headaches in the morning. It all lasted throughout the weekend and by Monday everyone will have to snap back to reality and start the school all over again.

“I’m so glad Sokka got us booked for this weekend.” Suki said. They sat at a booth reserved for members of the band by the stage and the bar. The Flying Boar was always full of people for the post-midterm hype and music lovers all flocked there like sheep to watch local bands perform. That and the drinks were cheap. “It’s about time we performed for a bigger audience.”

“And you deserve it!” Sokka slammed four bottles of beer onto the table and sat beside his girlfriend. “Aang’s getting us some shots.”

Katara’s eyes widened. “But he doesn’t drink.”

“Relax, it’s for _us_. You don’t have to worry about your boyfriend.”

“He’s not my boyfriend, Sokka.”

Sokka raised his hands in defense. “ Hey, whatever.”

She hated it when he said that and he said it so often. Sure, Katara has been really good friends with Aang since grade school, but that didn’t mean she liked him that way. The thought made her cringe, he was like a little brother to her.

“Besides, Katara, it’s his first major college party. I’m sure he’ll get around to it.”

Katara rolled her eyes. Sokka didn’t know Aang like she did. The guy had the restraint of a monk. He was a year younger than she was, which made this year his freshman year. They hung out a lot through the school year, but mostly because Katara was Aang’s only close friend in the university besides Sokka. He made friends, though. Aang had always made friends quicker than most people.

Speak of the devil, Aang arrived with a tray of shots fresh from the bar. “Here you go, guys!” He said, “Congratulations, Suki! You guys sound great!”

“Thank you, A—”

“Aren’t you gonna drink Aang?” Sokka said, cutting Suki off. Katara glared at her brother.

He and Suki had an ongoing bet to see when Aang was gonna get drunk first. Sokka bet on this year, Suki bet sometime next year or never. Katara told them to knock it off but they just laughed when she did.

Personally, Katara wasn’t so sure. Aang didn’t want to indulge himself with too much alcohol, or any alcohol for that matter. It made her wonder if there was ever going to be something that could make him budge.

“I can’t, Sokka,” he replied, “Besides, I have to leave early. I promised Gyatso I’d visit for the weekend.”

“That’s too bad,” Sokka said dejectedly, thumbing the neck of his beer bottle as if in deep thought.

Katara huffed. She and Aang had argued over that before coming to The Flying Boar together. It was the first time they were hanging out ever since the semester started without one or both of them nose deep in school work. She really missed her best friend, but she supposed he missed his foster father more, especially since he never got to see the man anymore. 

She took a shot. _Whatever,_ she thought, _Aang can have his fun and I’ll have mine._

“You were right, Snoozles.” A short girl with a big messy bun approached their table with a tower full of whatever mixed drink was on the menu. “It was worth the investment to book your girlfriend’s band. Here’s a tower for you and your friends. I also ordered one for each member of the band.”

Sokka introduced her to them. The girl, Toph, was the daughter of the bar’s owner and she helped manage the place. She was a freshman like Aang, and studied Music Production in the University. Her parents were making her co-manage the bar to compensate for not taking a degree in business like they wanted.

“They have no idea how much money I’ll be making in Music Production, though,” she told them, “They think just because it’s music related I can’t make any money out of it. I’ll prove them wrong.”

Katara noticed the girl barely looked them in the eye. In fact, her gaze was always so far away.

“She’s blind,” Aang whispered to her, “We have a literature class together and she told our professor she was going to be using audiobooks for class.”

From then on, Katara looked at her with a new found respect.

º

Toph sure was taking her time, thought Zuko while chugging at his third beer bottle as he sat at the far end of the bar. He was there to forget, forget about the bad grade he was probably getting for his midterm exams, forget about the hurtful words his sister left him with before he packed up all his things from his childhood home, forget about the way Mai looked at him when he broke up with her the night before.

It was a mistake on his part. He overthought everything and he couldn’t shake off the look in her eyes that night. He was unable to concentrate on his last batch of exams that morning.

When he took another swig off his beer bottle, he found it to be empty. _Goddammit_ , he though, gesturing to the barman for another cold one. 

“We’re moving, Sparky.” He almost spilled his drink as Toph crept up on him. _Goddammit_ , he thought again. The alcohol was already numbing his senses. But he supposed that was a the goal. “Damn, Zuko, that’s your fourth beer.”

“What of it?”

He wasn’t looking, but he felt her roll her eyes at him. “Come on, let me introduce you to some people. You need new friends anyway.”

Zuko found himself being promptly dragged to a booth near the stage where some four people sat around. He was concentrating on walking straight, but he was sure there was a wobble to his step either way.

“Alright, you guys!” Toph’s voice was a little too loud in his ear. “This here is Zuko. He’s also in Music Production, but he’s three years my senior. I met him through his Uncle.”

“Hello, Zuko here.” _Fuck!_ He cursed, his sober mind screaming at him from the back of his mind. _Way to make a first impression, dumb fuck!_

He barely caught their names the first try, but he did remember the vocalist of the band who played earlier, and he was pretty sure he was classmates with her boyfriend last year in one of his big auditorium classes. He didn’t remember the bald kid with an arrow beanie or the girl to his left who kept pushing a glass of water and some food into his personal space.

(He drank the water and ate the food though. He appreciated her effort, whoever she was. _Damn_ , he thought, _I must look really bad right now.)_

They were talking about something (he wasn’t sure what it was) while taking turns drinking shots from a bottle of vodka Toph (it was probably Toph, she loved vodka) had ordered, but every time it was his turn to take a shot, the girl beside him kept taking it for him. At first it pissed him off ( _I can still fucking drink!_ ), especially since he really wanted to drink some more, but when he started feeling hazy, he just let her take his shots. It was better that way, his sober mind—what he imagined to be the voice of his uncle—told him. At least, for now it was.

“I have to go,” the bald kid announced. “My flight’s at midnight and it’s almost 11.”

_What the_ fuck _, it’s only 11?!_

He felt the girl beside him quickly grab and down the shot the vocalist had just placed in front of him. He turned to look at her.

The haze from all the alcohol had cleared up a bit and he could now see she was actually quite pretty. Her long hair was up in a messy ponytail she probably had just fixed because it was too hot inside, a pair of blue clips held up the flyaway strands at the side of her head. She stared into space, as if savoring the shot of vodka she just downed before promptly passing their shared shot glass back to the vocalist.

Zuko noticed the vocalist’s boyfriend looking worriedly at the girl, then he realized there was a resemblance there. They must be siblings. _Damn,_ he thought, _I missed a lot, didn’t I?_

“So, Suki,” Toph said. Ah, so that was the vocalist’s name. “Do The Kiyoshi Warriors have original songs yet?”

“We do! We have a Spotify and we’re making an EP. Sokka’s been helping us write lyrics. He doesn’t look like it, but he’s really good a coming up with stuff.”

“Hey!”

They laughed. Zuko mentally stored the guy’s name into his head while his brain was sobering up. He didn’t normally get drunk that fast, but he hadn’t eaten all day. It was a pretty tough day.

“He’s always wanted to be in a band, though,” Suki continued, “You guys have to convince him to make one! He plays the guitar and he’s a really good singer. We’d love to have him, but we’re out of slots and The Kiyoshi Warriors is supposed to be an all-girl band.”

“Hey, I’m in!” Toph chimed, “I play the drums, and look!” Zuko felt an arm drape around his neck from his other side. “Zuko here plays the bass!”

_What?_

“No way!” Sokka yelled, “Are you sure? I can get Aang to play lead guitars, he told me he was down for it and I just had to give the word. And—oh _shit_!” He pointed to his sister. “Katara! You can play the keyboard!”

Zuko’s gaze shifted back to the girl, mentally storing her name into his memory as well.

She looked shocked and torn. “I-I don’t know, Sokka. Pre-med keeps me super busy. I don’t know if I could keep up with you guys.”

“I don’t wanna force you, but could you at least try?” Sokka pleaded. He looked like he really wanted this. Zuko didn’t know why, but hehoped she’d say.

“We can set up rehearsals in the meantime so you can see if you’ll be able to fit it in with your schedule.”

The table went quiet. Zuko hadn’t noticed that was the first time he spoke since he introduced himself. They stared at him like grew another head until Katara spoke up from beside him.

“Alright,” she said. He looked at her this time, his golden eyes meeting hers. They were and intense blue against the red and navy bar lights, it was like he was looking into a deep ocean. “I’ll try, but I’m not making any promises.”

“Let’s drink to it!!!” Toph ordered another round of drinks and snacks for them and this time Katara let Zuko take his own shots for himself.

º

Katara found herself walking back to the dorms at 5AM with Zuko at her side. They sobered up at a 24-hour fast food restaurant near The Flying Boar. It was a long night and she could barely remember what had happened in the time between agreeing to join Sokka’s band and sobering up while eating coffee and chicken nuggets.

She remembered there was a lot of laughing and screaming. They had been so high on endorphins from the alcohol. Sokka was a big cryer when he gets drunk so there was a whole episode of Suki trying to make him calm down. Toph just kept laughing at everyone as if she could see them, it was like she could never get drunk at all. At one point she remembered vomiting in the bar’s bathroom and Zuko was holding her hair up for her. He, on the other hand, was quite a chatty drunk, but she could barely remember anything he had said to them.

She looked at the guy to her right. He was drinking from the big bottle of water he got on the way back to the dorms. If she was being honest, her first impression of him wasn’t very good. He had reeked of beer and had a wobble to his step when she first saw him. His hair had been disheveled and his eyes drooped from the alcohol. Toph had told them to try to get him to sober up first and she willingly obliged. His state had looked terrifying and she went so far as to believe he hadn’t eaten all day.

When she got to know him, he was actually quite alright. He had surprised her when he spoke up to try to convince her to join the band, but he sounded sincere (and sobered up) and she felt like it would be nice working with him.

She just hoped she would find the time to be part of a band. She had a scholarship to maintain, after all.

She hadn’t noticed she was staring at Zuko until he held out the bottle of water to her. “Want some?”

“O-oh!” Well, she _was_ kind of thirsty. “Thank you.” She took the drink, not minding that they shared a bottle. They had already shared a shot glass and the whole helping her vomit into a toilet bowl did a lot for their relationship too. Sharing a bottle was no big deal.

The dorms were a short walk up a hill at the other side of the campus, which was a whole 15-minute walk from the city’s commercial area. The sun was already starting to rise when they got there.

Around them were trees that scattered around the campus and if they turned around, they would have a perfect view of the sunrise against the university’s quadrangle.

“Wanna see something great?”

Zuko has been in this university long enough to know what it looked like. He was an early riser and he would see that view every morning he jogged around the campus. He didn’t know if she’s seen it yet, but he felt the urge to make her look.

“Huh?”

He spun her around by her shoulders and made her look.

Her eyes widened. He could see the glint of the early morning sun in her eyes and he knew he did the right thing.

The sun peeped behind the trees near the grand stand. There was a view of the university’s buildings around them, but it was mostly just the field. The early morning fog made the sun’s rays look like a bright yellow haze around them. Birds were chirping and some people were already jogging around or riding on bicycles.

“You know,” she started after staring at the view for a while, “I never really liked this campus. I always thought it wasn’t anything special, and not everyone is nice to me, especially since I’m from the Water Tribes. The air’s always so stuffy and it’s always so hot. I never have time to hang out with my friends anymore and I feel like I’ve isolated myself from everything around me. 

“But I guess, looking at this...” She pauses, as if in thought. Then she looks at him straight in the eyes like she had back in the booth at the bar, but this time her eyes were pastel blue against the sunlight, her smile soft as the clouds in the sky.

“It makes me think it might not be so bad here after all.”

She looked at her feet and sighed before turning around to walk up to the foot of her building. It took Zuko a second to realize she had moved before catching up to her

He walked her to the entrance, the building was the one right next to his. 

“Thank you, Zuko,” she said, “I guess I’ll see you at band practice.”

Zuko barely remembered how he got from the foot of her dorm building to his bed. All he remembered was that he was feeling a whole lot better than he had been feeling the day before.

That afternoon, he woke up to a text from Sokka telling him band practice was next Friday. He didn’t even remember giving his number to Sokka.

Alcohol made people temporarily forget about the bad things, sure, but sometimes he hated how alcohol made you forget about the good things too.

º

º

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! It’s Zutara OPM Week!
> 
> OPM means Original Pinoy Music so basically we’re doing prompts based around that culture. If you haven’t heard of it yet, check out their twitter/tumblr/instagram if you wanna see the prompts! Don’t worry, it’s in English heehee Or go there if you just wanna eat up all the awesome new zutara content by amazing creators both from the Ph and all around the world because this ship just keeps giving and giving!!!  
> https://twitter.com/ZutaraOPM  
> https://zutaraopm.tumblr.com  
> https://instagr.am/zutaraopm
> 
> I’ll update this every day for 7 days. Wish me luck, I’ll definitely need it.


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